Entertainment News

Jewel working on new album & book

Jewel says for her next album she's not going to do "anything that's smart business." She tells Billboard.com her upcoming disc will be a companion piece to her 1995 debut disc, Pieces of You, and she intends to work on the new record the same way she did back then -- when she "didn't know about" the music industry.

The singer explains that she's doing her best to "forget everything" she knows about music genres and hit singles, and just "make a record that is really pure" and sing what's in her soul. Her reason behind the project is simple. She says she's currently "in a position to do that," so she'd "be an idiot" not to.

Jewel plans to record some tracks for the album at her Every Day Angels fan community later this month in Nashville, and at Nashville's famed RCA A studio.

Jewel is also working on her autobiography. She explains that she's had many fans ask her how she beat the odds and went from being a homeless singer-songwriter to a country and pop star.

Jewel says she'll "write about that and be very specific," and tell her story in a way she never has before. The singer adds that she's hoping to have both the album and the book ready for release by the end of this year or early next year.